The (Only) Story Ever Told

Yes, I am still editing this thing. Sometimes.

I got to thinking the other day, which is almost as rare as me actually updating this blog. In the secular world, many people see the Bible as "just a good story". It's a bunch of great little tales for Sunday School, almost on the level of Aesop's Fables--good stories with nice messages but no history behind them. Obviously to a Christian, we see the problem with this. The Bible isn't just stories--it's historical facts behind real events.

But. Why is it that the secular world sees the Bible that way? Why don't people who discredit the Bible throw it out entirely? Few can deny the significance of the Bible whether or not it is true. I think part of the reason people think it's just a story is this--if the Bible were a work of fiction, it would be an epic.

If the Bible were just standard literature, it would still be remembered throughout time. It would be ranked among Tolkien, Homer, and Beowulf as astounding, gripping fiction. This may be part of the reason why people are reluctant to see the Bible as true--everything works too perfectly. It plays out too much like a good story.

But there's a reason for that. The Bible is a good story, at the same time as being a history. Histories are entirely factual--this happened, then this happened, and so on. Facts without commentary arranged by date, not by purpose. In fact, a history writer doesn't have much of a purpose besides stating fact--they're not trying to prove anything to the reader.

But the Bible is arranged more like a story--events put together to prove points and stir emotions in the reader. How can it be true if it makes such a good story? It's all too convenient.

The reason is this--the Bible was written by the best Storyteller ever. He didn't just write the Bible about what happened. History is (pardon the overused pun) His Story. It is God writing an epic drama, not in ink and paper but in flesh, earth, and life. How do the Apostles make up such an interesting group of varied characters to rival the Fellowship of the Ring or the Knights of the Round Table? Because God brought them together. How is the time of the Judges so exciting as a war drama? Because God wrote it that way--not just the book, but the actual events penned by God.

This should, in my opinion, affect our interpretation of the Bible. We like to divide the Bible into types--the Psalms are poetry, the Gospels are history, the Epistles are doctrine. This is fine. Each type has its own writing style. But the History books are not just dry listings of facts. The Epistles are not cold legal documents. They are living, breathing pieces of literature--and each book is poetic in its own way.

Yes, we take the Bible literally. Realize as you read it that the events it describes actually happened. But also look at it like a piece of literature, even like a piece of narrative fiction in its style. If you see an event described in a Gospel, don't just say "well, that happened" and be done with it. Why did the author put that event there? Why did he phrase it the way he did? Why, for that matter, did that event even happen? Because, remember, the Bible wasn't just written by God about certain events. God wrote the events, too--and everything happened for a reason. Time is His novel. When we see the Bible as a great Story playing out even today, it begins to truly come alive.